Keep Out the Galoshes With a Super Jet Stream Staying in Charge

We have quite a set up taking place with a roaring jet stream you can trace back to the Pacific Northwest with wind speeds of 200 mph and then it cuts a path over the mammoth Pacific Ocean all the way to near China and the Phillipines. This is 8,000 miles worth of stormy weather and it is all being steered toward us due to teleconnections. We talked about strong high pressure at the North Pole earlier in the week here on the blog (Arctic Oscillation) and if you combine this with a strong eastern Pacific ridge and Western Atlantic ridge this brings our part of the country into the thick of a very busy weather pattern. I am just calling it the Super Jet Stream. You can really pick it out on the satellite picture below.

This does mean more rain is on the way but the news is not all bad. If you notice there is a small area of clearing between the clouds and since we will be downstream from the nose of another wind maximum associated with the Super Jet this tends to cause sinking air and some compressional heating. We could actually challenge 60 and then some as a result over the next couple of days. So I know the picture above is bleak and sometimes you may feel like Joe Btfsplk in a Li'l Abner cartoon created by Al Capp. Cartoon Joe is the world's most loving friend and worst jinx who always travels with a cloud over his head.

But we do not need to feel or be like Joe. A bright strange object or the sunshine is back in the forecast tomorrow and two of the next four days! We all are aware of how things cool down in a hurry here in November but sunshine goes a long way into curing all weather ills. Make sure to stay with Weather Team 18 for the latest. We will continue to update these rainfall totals but for now enjoy the nice break in the rain on Thursday! I do not see our next batch of rain arriving until later Thursday evening and we may even squeeze out a half-decent Friday with highs near 60 once again before the other shoe drops once again.


Blog Tidbit of the Day: Randy in Frankfort finally leads the pack in precipitation and of course it falls all in the form of rain. If this was snow which he told me he wishes it was, Frankfort and state road 28 through Clinton County would be digging out from nearly 8 inches of snow. Some models are showing our first possible sticking snow by later next week and weekend. But this is still a long ways out. You may want to get your snowfall forecast in while you can for the golden snow shovel forecast. This energetic pattern will still be in place with even colder air to work with. Each time a new system moves by it will drag even colder air down from the Arctic that has built up nicely over the past month. I could not believe that almost the entire country of Russia is covered in snow. Beware of the Siberian Express. I think it is fair to give those who read the weather blog a little advantage. Good luck! I do look a little like Rocky in the commercial promoting this contest and for good reason. It is all business with me when it comes to forecasting snow and the good news is I do not have to fight Clubber Lang. But nature can sometimes hit you with a vicious left hook. Our weather team will continue to watch it very closely for you.